Clouseau (a Belgian band) started as a group of friends back in 1984. Only … Read Full Bio ↴Clouseau (a Belgian band) started as a group of friends back in 1984. Only Karel Theys, the bass-player, had some previous experience in a band with The Employees. 1987 sees them coming out of the garage for the first time : they play Marktrock in Leuven en get a record deal for their first single "Brandweer".

In '88 they have a small hit with "Alleen met Jou" (Only with you) and win the Baccara-trophy in the squad of Raymond Van Het Groenewoud.

In 1989 they participated in the preselection to determine the Belgian delegate to the Eurovision Song Festival. Clouseau finishes second (behind Ingeborg), but now has a foot in the door. The breakthrough comes immediately with the single "Anne" and an album "Hoezo ?" (How so?). Screaming teenagers all over the place and smashed record sales in Belgium are the consequence. The Netherlands follow, when "Daar Gaat Ze" (There she goes) becomes a big hit. The 2nd album "Of zo" (Or so) also proves to be very successful.

1990 is a year which can only be described as the year of "Clouseau-mania". Everything the boys touch turns to gold.

Manager Hans Kusters : "They really appeal to the teens. Simple songs, but also lyrics in the form of "She comes, she goes or she is". No fuss about apartheid or the nuclear missiles. Clean, cute, sometimes rocking, sometimes slowing, always charming melodies with innocent and easily recognizable love- and dance stories."

In 1991, the Benelux is getting too small for the group so they (or at least the record company) decide to try to storm the European market.

This time they are appointed to participating for Belgium in the Eurovisionsongcontest (where the finish very low with "Geef het op", despite the very high hopes Flanders was posing in them). They record a CD in English called "Close Encounters" (mainly consisting of adaptations of their own Dutch songs) of which they sell 200.000 copies in the slipstream of Roxette's European tour of 1992.

The 2nd English-language album "In every small town", however, is a complete commercial failure. Frontman Koen Wauters starts a career as a television presenter and race-pilot (Paris-Dakar), kicks a few old friends out of the band and refocuses on the Dutch market with the CD "Oker" (Ochre) in 1995.

On the album "Adrenaline", only the two Wauters' Brothers remain. The album shows a more adult Clouseau. They have successfully survived the hype and are starting to produce decent material again, without the necessity to "score" or match the sales figures of the 1989-1990 craze.

What about the band members that were left behind :
- Bob Savenberg has ventured to a successful solo career (e.g. the duet with Dutch singer Stef Bos in "Breek de stilte" and his solo CD "Vuur en Vlam"). He also presented "Ultratop" (the Belgian hitparade on VRT) and has a small company that builds websites. In 2001, he did the show "Popstars" for VT4.
- Tjenne Berghmans has played in about every other Belgian group (e.g. The Scabs, Betty Goes Green ...) since he left Clouseau.
- Karel Theys, formerly of the Employees, was at the base of another Kloot Per W project, de Lama's in 1993-94.

In 1997, they release a compilation album "Clouseau 1987-1997" and have a celebration on their 10 years of existence. Koen Wauters (although hard to recognize amidst all the publicity for Belgacom) finishes another Dakar at the beginning of 1997. He also continues his television career (Familieraad, Koen & The Gang, Wedden dat ...), and fights off a female stalker in his bathroom. In 1999, he marries Carolijn Lillipally (who was a VJ for MTV-Europe).

In 1999 Clouseau conquers Flanders for the umpteenth time, on this occasion with the new CD "In Stereo". In a production with a lot of violins by Jean Blaute (see RvhG, Kate's Kennel ..) and with songs that were written by people such as Frank van der Linden (of De Mens), Jan Leyers (of My Velma & Soulsister), Mark Vanhie (The Bet, Sarah) and others, and pulled by singles such as "Heb ik ooit gezegd" (a Van Morisson-cover) and "Altijd meer en meer" the group even makes it back again as a headliner at Marktrock (where it all had started). This leads them to a new live-album, simply called "Live", released in 2000.

In 2001 they opened with an album with nothing but slow songs for the Dutch market - entitled "Ballades" - but in recording their next album they deliberately stepped away from this trend in ever slower songs. En Dans - wrapped in a funny cover hand-drawn by Marcel Vanthilt, who also sings on one song - was released in November 2001, and contained much more uptempo songs, taking them back to the starting days of the band. Most striking track was certainly the title song "En Dans", Clouseau in an festive disco-outfit. However the first single that was taken from the album was a ballad "Ik Geef Me Over" (I surrender) with a video that caused some controversy due to the smoking habit of Koen. Through the usual visits to radio stations and a break-in into the BigBrother house, the CD certainly didn't miss it's start, as it deserved platinum for 30,000 copies in the presales, and entered the album-charts at n°1. On the live-front it remained fairly quiet, working towards two gigantic gigs in the Sportpaleis in Antwerp in the month of December.

The band released their latest CD Vonken & Vuur ("Sparks & Fire") in March 2007.

Band members (original line-up) :
- Koen Wauters (vocals)
- Kris Wauters (keyboard and guitar)
- Bob Savenberg (drums and backing vocals)
- Karel Theys (bass)
- Tjenne Berghmans (guitar).

Albums :
- Hoezo(Hans Kusters Music - 1989)
- Of Zo (Hans Kuster Music - 1990)
- Close Encounters (EMI - 1991)
- Doorgaan (tot je niet meer op je benen kan staan) (EMI- 1992)
- In Every Small Town (EMI - 1993)
- Oker (EMI - 1995)
- Adrenaline (EMI - 1996)
- In Stereo (EMI - 1999)
- En Dans (EMI - 2001)
- Live in het Sportpaleis DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2003)
- Vanbinnen (2004)
- Clouseau in 't lang DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2006)
- Vonken en Vuur (2007)
- Zij aan Zij (2009)
Compilations :
- Clouseau Live (Hans Kusters Music - 1991)
- Clouseau 1987-1997 (EMI, 1997)
- Live (EMI, 2000)
- Ballades (EMI, 2001)

Dat ik verliefd ben
Clouseau Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

'k zou kunnen moorden
om van haar te mogen zijn
Ze lacht me uit,
m'n mooiste woorden maalt ze fijn
Wie is ze toch?
Ik voel me raar
Wie is ze toch?
komt het door haar?

Dat ik dans en dat ik spring,
dat ik duizel dat ik zing

Dat ik verliefd ben,
dat ik verliefd ben.
't gebeurt me niet zo vaak
maar nu is het wel raak
Dat ik verliefd ben,
dat ik verliefd ben
ooh help me uit de nood
want de jager schiet me dood.

Ik was een blije ongehuwde jongeman
Er was geen haast, er was geen dwang
dus alles kan
maar plosteling kwam zij in beeld
ik heb m'n privileges verspeeld
Het is voor haar dat ik spring
het is voor haar dat ik zing

Dat ik verliefd ben
dat ik verliefd ben,
't gebeurt me niet zo vaak
maar nu is het wel raak
Dat ik verliefd ben,
dat ik verliefd ben.

ooh help me uit de nood
want de jager schiet me dood

Overall Meaning

The song's title, "Dat ik verliefd ben" translates to "That I'm in Love". Clouseau sings about being completely smitten with someone, to the point where he would do anything to be with them. The first stanza talks about his infatuation with this person, to the point where he says he could even murder to be with them. However, he also acknowledges that she doesn't take his words seriously, and laughs them off. This leads to his confusion about who she really is and why he feels this way.

In the chorus, Clouseau emphasizes how rare it is for him to fall in love, but how he's completely consumed by these feelings now. He's so in love that he's dancing, singing, and feeling dizzy. He's also aware of the danger of this situation, using the metaphor of a hunter who might "shoot him dead".

The second verse reveals that Clouseau was a content and unmarried young man before he met this woman. He had no urgency to find a partner, but everything changed when he met her. He acknowledges that he's willing to sacrifice everything for her, even his previous way of life. And once again, he cites his love for her as the reason for his euphoric state.

Overall, the lyrics of "Dat ik verliefd ben" paint a picture of a man completely swept off his feet by a woman he's fallen for. He's disoriented by his feelings, but also willing to risk everything to be with her.

Line by Line Meaning

'k zou kunnen moorden
I would do anything, including committing murder, to have her

om van haar te mogen zijn
just to be with her

Ze lacht me uit,
She laughs at me,

m'n mooiste woorden maalt ze fijn
crushing and disregarding all the eloquent words I say to her

Wie is ze toch?
Who is she?

Ik voel me raar
I feel strange

komt het door haar?
Could it be because of her?

Dat ik dans en dat ik spring,
That I dance and jump

dat ik duizel dat ik zing
that I feel dizzy and sing

Dat ik verliefd ben,
That I am in love

dat ik verliefd ben.
That I am in love.